Posted By Dan Greenfield on Sep 7, 2024 | 6 comments

GIFMANIA! A 50th ANNIVERSARY Salute!

By WALT GROGAN

It’s hard to believe that 50 years ago — on Sept. 7, 1974 — the Saturday morning live-action Shazam! TV show debuted on CBS!

At the time, I had only been a Captain Marvel fan for a short period after learning about him in that great book of essays, All in Color for a Dime and a year or two after that when DC licensed the Big Red Cheese from Fawcett. So to say I was excited to see a live action Captain Marvel on the small screen is an understatement.

But I have to say I had a love/hate relationship with the show even back then. On the plus side, the show was perfectly cast with its leads: Jackson Bostwick as Captain Marvel, Michael Gray as Billy Batson, and Les Tremayne as Mentor. But on the downside, each show could be a 20-minute snorefest, a low-rent ABC Afternoon Special. The only real excitement was when Billy transformed into Cap, typically in the last few minutes of the show, and when our hero delivered the moral at the end.

However, the show did have a lot of things that I did like! Here are 13 THINGS TO LOVE ABOUT THE 1970s SHAZAM! TV SHOW — RANKED, complete with fancy gifs!

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13. The Credits. Those opening credits really set the stage for some excitement: from seeing the leads take action to showcasing the Elders and the Eterni-Phone, and witnessing the transformation of Billy to Cap — all the while getting a quick recap of how Captain Marvel came to be!

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12. The Locations. One of the biggest cost-saving options of the show was the lack of any standing sets with maybe the exception of the Shazam! Van. Instead, Mentor and Billy drove around the suburbs of Los Angeles visiting grocery stores, fast food drive-ins, junk yards, and horse farms. After a while, all of these nondescript locations started to blend together, but today it’s a fun glimpse at what the world looked like 50 years ago.

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11. The Guest-Stars. The show was notable for giving a lot of the kid actors of the time guest spots, including the Partridge Family’s Danny Bonaduce; Jackie Earle Haley; the ubiquitous Pamelyn Ferdin, and Lance Kerwin of James at 15. And there were adult stars, too, including one of my faves, John Karlen of Dark Shadows fame and Michael Gray’s predecessor, Frank Coghlan. Jr, who played Billy Batson in the Adventures of Captain Marvel serial.

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10. The SHAZAM! Van. Nope, it wasn’t a Winnebago — the Shazam! Van was a 1973 Open Road RV/Motor Home! Under the expert driving of Mentor, Billy Batson traveled the highways and byways of the Los Angeles suburbs to help kids overcome their greatest obstacles! And I have to say it always makes me laugh when a fan criticizes Captain Marvel’s lightning bolt on the front of van with comments about protecting his identity. Like anyone is going to think that Michael Gray or Les Tremayne looks like Jackson Bostwick! Seriously, how many folks today have decals of their favorite characters or movies on their cars, let alone personalized license plates!

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9. The Mighty Isis. The show and its merchandising was so successful that production company Filmation decided to spin off a new hero to join the Shazam! universe — Isis! The plucky and beautiful JoAnna Cameron played the titular character much to the delight of teenage boys and girls! And Filmation was happy because the licensing of this original character meant more money for the company!

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8. The Eterni-Phone. How do you save money in a clever way? Replace the abandoned subway tunnel that accessed the Rock of Eternity with a magical walkie-talkie! And thus was born… the Eterni-Phone! A simple metal bowl with blinking lights allowed the Elders to communicate with Billy and Mentor! And you have to give credit to comic book editor E. Nelson Bridwell for coining the name in Shazam! #26!

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7. The Elders. One of the show’s greatest achievements was giving a name to the group of gods and demi-gods (and a deceased mortal) that provided Billy with his powers. The Elders! While their visits were often maddeningly vague, the designs and animation were well done! And if you listen closely, you might be able to discern the voice of the redoubtable Adam West as Hercules!

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6. Transformation. The transformation of Billy to Captain Marvel was spoiled every episode in the opening titles but every kid was on pins and needles waiting for it later in the episode. Usually held to the end when Billy and Mentor were out of options, once Billy shouted the magic word and lightning crackled and thunder pealed, it wouldn’t take but a second for Captain Marvel to join the fray!

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5. Flying. You (sort of) believed a man could fly four years before the Man of Steel did it on the big screen in Superman: The Movie. Utilizing rear-projection techniques similar to the approach taken for George Reeves’ Man of Tomorrow in the Adventures of Superman TV show, the production also tried an innovative approach of strapping Jackson Bostwick to a board attached to a truck and barreling him down the street while filming him from head to torso. If you look closely, you can sometimes see the red-color bore helping to support him. Still, those flying scenes were great for the time!

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4. John Davey. John Davey had the unenviable task of leaping into Jackson Bostwick’s boots at a moment’s notice after Bostwick and the show’s producers had a falling out over an on-set accident. While the switcheroo was a bit jarring at first, Davey lent his rugged good looks to the World’s Mightiest Mortal and and closed out the series as the Big Red Cheese.

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3. Les Tremayne. What’s not to love about Les Tremayne’s Mentor? Was he secretly the wizard Shazam or Uncle Dudley under an assumed name? I’ve always thought the former because the wizard was otherwise nowhere to be found and if my hunch is correct, Billy certainly couldn’t call him Shazam without transforming! The comics handled it differently by having Uncle Dudley grow a mustache and casting him in the role. But while I love Dudley, it just didn’t make sense to have him be a little more serious.

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2. Michael Gray. Michael Gray made a marvelous Billy Batson! With his long, flowing locks, youthful good looks, and natural, friendly charm he was the perfect counterpart to his alter ego, Captain Marvel. Although he was a bit older than the comic book Billy, it worked to his character’s advantage as a kind of big brother to the kids he was often trying to help.

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1. Jackson Bostwick. There’s no disrespect intended to Michael and Les but the star of the show is Captain Marvel and Filmation did an excellent job of casting when they hired Jackson Bostwick for the lead. His natural charisma burst through the screen. And while John Davey did an admirable job of filling Jackson’s boots, Bostwick remains the beloved standard bearer with his friendly demeanor and athletic build.

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MORE

— Imagine If DC’s 1970s SHAZAM! Comic Went All in On the TV Show. Click here.

— 13 MIGHTY MOMENTS in the 50-Year History of SHAZAM! at DC Comics. Click here.

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A 10-year-old Walt Grogan fell in love with the Big Red Cheese thanks to essays written by Dick Lupoff and Don Thompson in the paperback edition of All in Color for a Dime, released in 1970 and bought for him by his father off a paperback spinner rack in a liquor store on the South Side of Chicago. Walt runs The Marvel Family Web Facebook page devoted to all incarnations of the Fawcett/DC Captain Marvel and blogs about Captain Marvel at shazamshistorama.com.